Otto flour



O. FLOHR.

GAR COUPLING.

(No Model.)

No 445,242. Patented Jan. 27, 1891.

a d ad/12% INVENTOR: 2%

By his Al/omeys, m .C'BYLMM WITNESSES:

NlTE STATES PATENT OFFICE,

OTTO FLOHR, OF BUFFALO, NElV YORK, ASSIGNOR TO CHARLES A. POOLEY OF SAME PLACE.

CAR-CCU PLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 445,242, dated January 27, 1891.

Application filed April 7, 1890. Serial No. 346,868. (No model.)

T aZZ whom it may concern.- showing my improvements applied to the Be it known that I, OTTO FLOHR, a citizen latter. Fig. 2 is a fragmentary plan of a carof the United States, residing in Buitalo, in coupler provided with myimprovements and the county of Erie and State of New York, attached to the buffer-beam of a tender. Fig.

5 have invented certain new and useful Im- 3 is a horizontal section thereof, and Fig. etis provements in Oar-Oouplers, of which the fola vertical section thereof cut on the line 4; t lowing is a specification. in Fig. 2.

This invention relates, generally, to car- Referring to the drawings, let A represent couplers of the class having a horizontallythe locomotive; B, the tender thereof; 0, the

IO swinging coupling-jaw pivoted to the drawcar-coupler for the tender; D, the couplinghead and a horizontally-swinging lockingjaw; E, the locking-pawl therefor, and F the pawl for locking the jaw, both these members operating-chain for moving the pawl. being constructed to move in one direction by The tender B is construct-ed with the usual gravity when releascd,and it relates part-icubuffer-beam B, to which the coupler O is I 5 larly to couplers for locomotive-tenders and fastened. The-coupler 0 consists of an into means whereby such couplers can be conclosing casing within which the swinging veniently operated by the engineer of the 10- coupling-jaw D and a lock therefor (such as comotive to which the tender is attached. E) are pivoted, the casing being constructed My invention aims to provide certain imwith top wall a and bottom wall I) and with 20 provements in car-couplers of this general side walls 0 and (Z, and terminating at its inclass and to provide an improved tenderner side with a vertical rear base-plate c, coupler, and has for its object to provide adapted to be bolted to the butter-beam B of means whereby the coupler can be operated the tender. The walls a l) c d are preferably with more facility than heretofore, means of the shape usually employed in couplers of 2 5 whereby dust and other foreign matter can this class, adapted for ordinary cars, and are be excluded from the working parts of the cast in one piece with the rear base-plate e. coupler to a greater extent than previously, The latter preferably projects beyond the to improve the construction of the couplingside walls sufficiently to permit the passage jaw, and also to provide a coupler for locomothrough it of bolts ff, by means of which it 8o 3 tive-tenders which shall have all the advanis secured to the butler-beam B of the tender.

' tages of automatic couplers of the general Flanges 99 are preferably provided between class described and be capable of engagement the side walls 0 and (l and the projecting ends with car-couplers generally. of the base-plate c for the purpose of increas- To this end in carrying out my invention ing the strength of the coupler. The top and 35 I provide a dust-cover for closing the aperbottom walls or and h maybe suitably ribbed,

ture provided for receiving the operating if desired, as shown in Fig. 9. chain of: the coupler, and I construct the cou p- The couplinaw is constructed, as usual, ling-arm of the coupling-j aw with a solid inwith the coupling-arm 7L and the lockingarm ner or working face, forming an unbroken "II, and is mounted on inclines j in such man- 4 wall from the top to the bottom of the arm, ner that it has a normal tendency to swing and in applyingmy improvements to locomoto the uncoupled position. The arm 'i is contive-tenders I extend the operating-chain structed to be engaged when in the coupled from the coupler along the tender and into position by a lock--such, for example, as the reach of the engineer, and I construct on the locking-pawl E-and when in the uncoupled 9 5 45 butter-beam of the tender a coupler of imposition to swing outwardly, as seenin Fig.3. proved form and embodying the automatic The pawl E is pivoted within the casing 0 features and horizontally-swinging couplingand constructed to swing between two injaw of car-couplers of the class described. clines 7a and Z within the casing, so con- In the accompanying drawings, which illusstructed that the pawl will have a normal [00 5o trate my invention, Figure 1 is a fragmentary tendency to swing into the locked position.

side elevation of a locomotive and tender, The chain F is secured to the pawl E and passes out through a hole min the top of the casing. The chain preferably extends from the coupler forward along the tender and terminates near the forward end thereof and within the reach of the engineer of a locomotive to which the tender may be attached, whereby by operating the chain the engineer can control the coupler without leaving his position in the locomotive-cab. Preferably the chain F passes upwardly into a pipe it, near the top of the tender and extending longitudinally thereof, and terminates at the forward end of the pipe in a handle 0, as shown in Fig. 1; or the chain may be carried over the tender and to the cab of the locomotive, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1.

In order to prevent the entrance of dust through the hole 192, I provide a cover or stopperp over this hole. The cover 79 is preferably fixed to the chain F above the casing, and is so constructed that when the pawl E is in the locked position the cover 19 will cover the hole m, and when the chain F is pulled to uncouple the coupler the cover 3 will be moved away from the hole on until the chain F is released, whereupon it will again seat itself over the hole and close the latter.

As heretofore constructed the couplin g-j aw D has had a horizontal notch extendingtransversely across its coupling-arm h and-adapted to receive an ordinary coupling-link G, which was retained therein by a coupling-pin H, which passed through the usual pin-hole (1 near the end of the arm h. This construction was disadvantageous in that the edges of the notch on the innerface of the arm 71. were liable to catch the corners of an adjacent coupling-jaw when the couplers were in use, and the bifurcated end of the coupling-jaw presented an uneven working-face for contact with the corresponding jaw of an adjacent coupler. According to my invention I construct the arm h of the coupling-j aw of a greater width than heretofore, and with a re cess r in its upper end for receiving the ordinary coupling-link G, and I close said recess at the back by a wall 5 on the inner face of the arm 72, whereby the inner face presents an uninterrupted contactsurface for engagement with the jaw of an adjacent car-coupler.

In operating my improved car-con pler when applied to tenders, the engineer, when desiring to uncou ple the coupler, will pull the chain up, thereby swinging the locking-pawl E out of engagement with the coupling-jaw D and permitting thelatter to swing to the uncoupled position. Upon releasing the chain F the pawl E will return to the locked position and the cover 12 will seat itself over the hole m thereby closing the latter. As the jaw D is swung to the coupled position by coupling with an adjacent coupler, its locking-arm 'i will swing back the pawl E until it has passed the latter, whereupon the pawlwill swing into engagement with the arm 1' and lock the jaw in the coupled position.

My invention provides an improved coupler for locomotive-tenders which is capable of coupling with car-couplers generally, and which combine strength and simplicity of parts, and can be automatically operated without the necessity of stepping between the cars to effect the coupling operation.

My improved dust-cover 2), and also my improved coupling-jaw D, can be applied generally to car-couplers of the class having a horizontally-swinging coupling-jaw and a movable lock for securing the jaw in the coupled position.

My invention maybe modified as to details of construction, and certain of its features may be used independently of others without departing from the nature of the invention.

\Vhat I claim is the following defined novel features and combinations, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, viz.:

1. In a car-coupler for locomotive-tenders, the combination, with the tender and a carcoupler secured thereto and consisting of a swinging coupling-jaw constructed to have a normal tendency to swing to the uncoupled position and a swinging pawl for locking said jaw in the coupled position, of a connection secured at one end to said pawl and adapted when pulled to move the latter and release said jaw, said connection extending from said pawl forward along the tender and terminating near the forward end thereof and within the reach of the engineer of a locomotive to which the tender may be attached, whereby by operating said connection the engineer can control said coupler without leaving his position.

2. In a car-coupler, the combination, with a swinging coupling-j aw and a swinging pawl for holding the latter in the coupled position, and an inclosing casing or draw-head within which said jaw and pawl are pivoted, said casing being constructed with a hole in its upper part, of a connection secured at one end within said casing to said pawl and extending thence through the hole in the top of said casing and adapted when pulled to operate said pawl, and a cover or stopper secured to said connection and constructed when said pawl is in the locked position to cover the hole in said casing, whereby when the coupling is in the locked position the entrance of dust within said casing through said hole is prevented by said cover.

3. In a car-coupler for locomotive-tenders, the tender and a car-coupler secured thereto, said coupler consisting of a swinging couplingjaw constructed to have a normal tendency to swing to the uncoupled position and a swinging locking-pawl for locking said jaw in the coupled position, in combination with a chain secured at one end to said pawl and adapted when pulled to move the latter and release said jaw, said chain extending from said pawl forward along the tender, guided by suitable guides, and terminating near the forward end of the tender in a handle within the reach of the engineer of the locomotive to which the IIO tender may be attached, substantially as set forth.

4. In a car-coupler for locomotive-tenders, the tender and a car-coupler secured thereto, said coupler consisting of at swinging coupling-jaw and a swinging looking-pawl for locking said jaw in the coupled position, in l combination with a guide tube or pipe secured to and extending along the tender from a point above the coupling to a point at the forward end of the tender, and a chain secured at one end to said pawl and extending therefrom through said guide-tube and terminztting, outside of the front end of said guide-tube in an operating-handle, substantiztlly as set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

' OTTO FLOHR.

\Vitnesses:

FRED. A. BRITTON, OREL L. HERSHISER. 

